A unique journey through the chronology of empire in Peru: After visiting the 5,000 year-old remains of Caral, the oldest city in the Americas, we leave the Spanish capital Lima and travel away from the ocean to the 2,800 year-old subterranean temples and zoomorphic motifs of Chavín de Huantar. Beyond the frigid waters of Lake Llanganuco at the foot of Peru’s highest mountain (Huascarán, 6,768 metres – 22,200 ft) and the warrior sculptures of Sechín, we continue through the remains of the Moche and Chimú cultures before returning to Lima with time to visit some of its major museums.

Heading south, the arid Paracas peninsula was once home to the pre-Inca culture that produced history’s finest textiles, and is now the refuge of an extraordinary diversity of marine fauna.

The wine growing region of Ica, the world’s largest astronomical calendar at Nazca, the neo-colonial elegance of Arequipa with its fine cuisine, and Lake Titicaca, the cradle of the Inca creation legend, bring us to Cusco. Once the capital of the greatest empire ever seen in the Americas, Cusco is now the Mecca for all travellers to South America, and it will be our base for our exploration of the legacy of the Incas.